Have you ever been so overwhelmed by the mountains in front of you that you just want to go run and hide? I think most of us have.
Recently I've been reflecting again on one man who hid. His name was Elijah. He had been under God's faithful watch care during a time of great crisis in Israel. Not only was there a drought in the land, but feeling that "he" was the cause, wicked king Ahab was seeking his life. However, God intervened; first by feeding him by a brook and next by feeding through the gracious generosity of a widow.
But this time of "hide and seek" was not to last forever. Once the appointed time was up, God then took Elijah back to Israel and through his faithfulness, one of the most amazing miracles occurred before all the prophets of Baal. Fire came down from heaven and burned up his sacrifice, and rain returned to a land that had been in drought for three years. (You can read more about this story in 1st Kings 18.)
When we look at the story of Mount Carmel, we stand in amazement. Truly, "The Lord, He is God, the Lord He is God!" What a testimony AGAINST the prophets of Baal and for the King of Heaven!
However, what happened after this mountain top experience? What happened after God worked so marvelously to display His power?
The next thing we know, Elijah get's word that the queen wants his life, and what does he do? He runs for all his strength to hide. And he finds a cave…
…
God has been blessing in my life in so many ways these past months. We just returned from a mountain top experience at the General Conference, and I continue to see answered prayer after answered prayer in my life. However, weary from the physical strain and overwhelmed by the bigger spiritual battle yet ahead, I have to be honest. I've been hiding in my cave! However, just this past week, God awakened me to the fact that I was hiding.
I was reading my Bible one morning and praying and I heard His voice… "Ummm… Elijah… I mean Melody… what doest thou here in this cave? Don't you know I need you on the battle field?"
Yep, even Melody occasionally wants to retreat to a cave…and I'm not sure why, because unlike Elijah, no one is seeking my life! But thankfully God is patient and merciful and He has found me and pulled me out. So I'm now back on the field.
Wherever you may be, on the field of spiritual battle, climbing mountains of faith, or hiding in a cave, remember you are not alone! We may have bigger mountains ahead, but the same God who has led in the past will bring us through the future. Let us continue to hold on to Him.
"I will never leave thee or forsake thee!" Hebrews 13:5
[Note: Thanks to Chelsey for the previous powerful posts on "Experiencing Gethsemane." (And also for the many that came before!) I am so grateful for her helping carry this blog while I finished time at the Annual Council and took time out these past several weeks to try to catch up. What a blessing. We will enjoy more posts from Chelsey in the coming days, especially as I will be out of the country from mid-December thru January on a mission trip to Bangladesh and Nepal.]
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